Five folk from the churches of the Congregational Federation returned from the Dominican Republic at the end of November following a trip during which they learned a great deal about the work which Christian Aid partners, and particularly Onè Respe, are doing in that country.
We saw at first hand the conditions in which poor Dominicans, Dominico-Haitians and Haitian immigrants are living, both in urban and rural situations. We witnessed at first hand the discrimination which Haitians and, indeed anyone with a sufficiently black skin, face in the DR but also the desperation of some people in trying to smuggle themselves across the border between the two countries. In these difficult conditions the CA partners work hard to bring about positive change which will improve the lives of the people.
Onè Respe’s name, Honour and Respect In Haitian Creole, tells what the underlying philosophy of all their work is. Their work in education, health including HIV/AIDS, combating domestic and community violence, helping with identity papers and developing income generating projects are all aimed at transforming people. People who are given self-respect are more likely to respect others, hence reducing prejudice and violence. People with better health and education are better equipped to deal with the vagaries that life on the margins throws their way.
We were also impressed by the work of another CA partner with which Onè Respe has close ties. The Centro Montalvo, established by the Jesuits, seeks to mobilise civil society in putting pressure on the DR government to allocate more of the national budget to social aspects – health, education, housing, clean water, etc. And they are having some success.
We saw that the money so far raised by CF is being well spent on working with those who are poor, marginalized and discriminated against, surely just the sort of people Jesus sought out. We came back fired up to encourage our churches to continue to support Onè Respe over the coming year, both by raising money and by keeping this work constantly in our prayers.